Statement by H.E. Mr. Václav Bálek, President of the Human Rights Council, at the OHCHR workshop on promoting and protecting economic, social and cultural rights within the context of addressing inequalities in the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic

High Commissioner Türk,

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is a pleasure to participate in this high-level opening. Allow me to congratulate Mrs. Virgínia Brás for her appointment as Chair of the workshop.

When it created the Human Rights Council, the United Nations General Assembly reaffirmed that all human rights are universal, indivisible, interrelated, interdependent and mutually reinforcing. It decided that the Human Rights Council should be responsible for promoting universal respect for the protection of all human rights and fundamental freedoms for all, without distinction of any kind and in a fair and equal manner.

In line with this, the General Assembly mandated the Council to, among other things, contribute, through dialogue and cooperation, towards the prevention of human rights violations. And, as I stated last December upon being elected Council President for 2023, one of my three main priorities for this year is to support all actions and initiatives aiming to fulfil the Council’s preventive mandate.

The roots of conflicts often lie in long-standing denial of economic, social and cultural rights, discrimination, inequalities, social exclusion, impunity and civil and political rights violations. It’s therefore important that the connection between economic, social and cultural rights and social and political unrest be examined by early warning and conflict prevention mechanisms, including the Human Rights Council.

The Human Rights Council has numerous special procedure mandates related to economic, social and cultural rights, such as food, water and sanitation; health; education; adequate housing; cultural right; foreign debt; and extreme poverty. The reports and recommendations of the mandate holders can serve as valuable tools for risk analysis, prevention and resolution of conflicts.

The Human Rights Council’s investigative mechanisms can also be used as valuable tools in identifying underlying gaps in economic, social and cultural rights protection and examining the root causes of conflict.

In the context of COVID-19 recovery, the Human Rights Council has given attention to economic, social and cultural rights in various seminars, consultations and panel discussions. Topics have included vaccines and medicines, mental health, social security and the importance of robust and efficient public policies and of adequately resourced and fully functioning services for the protection of economic, social and cultural rights. In addition, the Human Rights Council’s Social Forum has focused on human rights issues relating to poverty and inequalities (2020), good practices, success stories, lessons learned and challenges in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic (2021) and water for human rights and sustainable development (2022).

In the context of the 4^th cycle of the Universal Periodic Review cycle, States have an opportunity to strengthen the realization of economic, social and cultural rights, including through providing targeted recommendations relating to these rights.

I look forward to hearing about the discussions you will hold over the next three days on identifying gaps, challenges and opportunities for the Council to further strengthen its work on the promotion and protection of economic, social and cultural rights.

Thank you.